General-service car



D. HINDAHL.

GENERAL SERVICE CAR.

APPLICATION man NOV. 10, I919.

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GENERAL SERVICE CAR.

APPLICATION FjL ED NOV. 10. 1919.

1,382,191 PatentedJune 21,1921.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

DAVID HINDAHL, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGIN'OR TO NATIONAL DUMP CAR (10., OF

' CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF MAINE.

GEN ERAL-SEEVIGE CAR.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented June 21-, 1921.

Application filed November 10, 1919. Serial No. 337,002.

To all whom it may concern: e it known that 1, DAVID HINDAHL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in General-Service Cars, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to door operating mechanism, particularly in connection with general service cars.

The obj ects of the invention are to provide a simple and efficient door operating mecha nism which is positive in its action, so arranged that no strain is placed. upon the mechanism tending to distort it, thus minimizing repairs; to provide a device which can be easily operated by the class of levers usually employed for such purpose; and to provide an operating device so arranged as 'to increase the efficiency of the car in unloading.

General service cars, as is well known, have their flat bottoms composed largely of drop doors from which the dumpable lading is discharged. Ithas been customary in the past to provide operating mechanism for these doors by means of which a plurality of doors can be closed and opened simultaneously.

The classes of operating mechanisms, general speaking, are of two kinds: those which employ a winding shaft connected by chains or flexible elements to the doors, and those in which the shaft placed beneath the doors operates directly to raise the same. The first class of device is open to the objection that owing to the weight of the doors, the chains or flexible elements connecting the doors to the shaft are apt to stretch or kink unequally, so that some of the doors may not be fully closed, making it impossible to transfer the load from the chain to the shaft through suitable'devices usually employed. Cars having these chain and shaft operated doors are open'to the further objection that the chains are'in the path of the outco-ming load as it is discharged, thus hindering free flow of the material from the car. Cars of the second classthat is, those employing the shaft as the direct operating member for the doors'while free from the last-named objection, are apt to become defective because of the torsional strains imposed upon the shaft inclosing the doors. These shafts extend approximately one-half the length of the car and are operated from the end of the car by rolling the shaft back and forth beneath the doors. The shaft ends farthest from the ends of the car, owing to the torsional strains upon the shaft, will sometimes become distorted so that certain of the doors will not be fully closed, and this is especially true if small amounts of material are left upon the doors, requiring the exercise of unusual effort to compel the shaft to move into fully closed position.

My new door operating mechanism disclosed in this application overcomes the objections to both types'of mechanism, there being no chains to interfere with the load or to become stretched, and there being no strain imposed upon the shaft in moving it under the doors to support them. The closing of the doors by lifting each door singly can be done with less effort and probably in less time than a complete section can be raised by the old devices, while the dropping of the doors and sections takes place as formerly.

Another advantage in lifting the doors singly is that the. operator sees any objects of material which may be left on the door or underframe requiring cleaning oif. When the doors are raised from the end of the car as is now commonly done, it is not always possible to notice these things, the result being that attempts will frequently be made to close the doors when particles of coal are interposed between the edge of the door and the adjacent underframe member, thus putting a great strain upon the operating mechanism in attempting to force the doors into fully closed position.

The invention is illustrated on the accompanying sheets of drawings, in which Figure 1 is a fragmentary side-elevation of a general service car embodying my invention; and

Fig. 2 is a transverse sectional view of the same car, showing the drop doors and their associated operating mechanism in diiferent positions. a

I have chosen to illustrate my invention in connection with a general service car having sides 10, ends 11, and a floor composed largely of lump doors 12, which are pivotally connected at their inner ends to the center sill structure 13, the framework of the car including transverse supporting and strengthening members 14:, which are provided with stop members 15, upon which the dump doors 12 rest in an open position.

This invention has to do primarily with the door operating mechanism. Having'in mind the disadvantages of door operating devices heretofore employed and the advantages of the present door operating mechanism as herein set forth, attention is called to the fact that each of the dump doors is raised from an open position to a closed position separately and independently of any other one of the doors. f

Slidably secured to the bottom of each one of the doors, at the outer edge thereof and preferably midway the length of the same, is a latch 16 having a downwardly projecting finger 17 the function of which will be referred to later. I

f As shown in full lines at the right hand side of Fig. 2, the dump door 12 is in its lowered or-open position. Under such condition an operating shaft 18, which is later ally and bodily movable in a plurality of slots 19 in the transverse frame members 14 occupies its outermost position. With the shaft 18 in its outermost position, each of the dump doors 12 may be raised individually and directly by'hand by inserting any suitable take 20 into a receiving socket 21 carried on. the under side of the door.

With the latch 16 in its inward non-functioning position, the door 12 may be com 'pletely raised, whereupon the latch may be moved outwardly into a position where it rests upon and is supported by the shaft 18, with the latter in its outermost position. Accordingly, the door 12 is supported in its raised or closed position by the operating shaft through the slidable latch 16. This supporting arrangement, however, is a temporary one, for as soon as all of the dump doors have been raised into closed position .and their slidably mounted latches have been moved outwardly by hand to rest upon the associated shaft, as indicated in dotted lines at the right hand side of Fig. 2, the shaft 18may be moved laterally inwardly to a position under the doors for permanently supporting the latter.

During the inward movement of the shaft 18, it engages the depending fingers-17 on the latches 16, causing the latches to be moved inwardly at least to the point where'the outer edges of the latches are flush with theouter edges of the dump doors 12, as shown at the left hand side of Fig. 2. It is apparent, therefore, that if the shaft 18 is now moved outwardly beyond the outer edges of the dump doors, the latter are free to drop into an open position for dumping purposes. It is seen therefore that the dump doors are raised directly and individually by hand and are temporarily held in closed position bythe shafts through the overlying latches, the

load later being transferred permanently to 'most positions under the doors forming the any stake which may be handy at the time.

position.

the shafts when the shafts are moved inwardly under the doors, at which time the latches also are moved inwardly into a nonlat hing position, the shafts in their innerpermanent supporting arrangement. When the shaft in any section of the car is moved outwardly, all of the doors inthat particular section of the car'supported by the associated shaft are dropped simultaneously.

The slots 19 as here shown extend slightly inwardly and upwardly from the sides: of the car, so that the doors 12 are given their final closing movement as the shafts are moved inwardly. To facilitate operation of the shafts, each of the latter is provided with gear wheels 22 meshing with racks 23 supported by the cross members 11 and arranged adjacent to and following the 0011- tour of the lower portion of the slots 19.

It will be noted that the doors need not be provided permanently withlevers for raising-them, it merely being necessary to insert temporarily into the socket members 21 The ocket 2 1, in each case, comprises a casting havingat its rear end a receiving openingand also spaced depending projections at the front between which the stake is received. r

It is my intention to cover all modifications of the invention falling within the spirit and scope of the following claims.

I claim: 1. In a general service car having a door, a shaft, and hand operated means carried by said door for engaging said shaft for supporting the door in a given position.

2. In a general service car having a door, a shaft, and hand operated slidably mounted means carried by said door for engaging said shaft for supporting the door in a given 3. In a general service car having a door, a movable shaft, and a hand operated latch carried by said door and movable into a position to be supported on said shaft whereby the door may besupported in a given position;

4:. In a general service car having a door, a shaft, and a'hand operated latch carried by said door and movable into a position to he supported on said shaft whereby the door may be temporarily supported in a given position, said shaft being movable under the door for permanently supporting the latter.

5. In a general service car having a door, a shaft, and a hand operated latch carried by said door and movable into a position to be supported on said shaft whereby the door may be temporarily supported in a given position, said shaft being movable under the door forpermanently supporting the latter, said latch being moved into a non-latching position during such movement of the shaft. I

6. In a general service car having a door, a shaft, hand operated means carried by said door for engaging said shaft for supporting the door in a given position, said shaft being movable to a point under the door for permanently supporting the latter.

In a general service car having a door, a laterally movable shaft, a hand operated movably mounted latch carried by said door movable into a position over the shaft whereby the door may be supported, said latch being moved to an unlatched position by the shaft as the latter is moved into a supporting position under said door.

8. In a general service car having a door, a movable shaft, and a slidably mounted latch mounted on said door having a depending finger, said latch when in a given position being located over the shaft whereby the door is supported, said shaft being movable into a position under the door for supporting the latter and engaging said finger for moving the latch into a non-latching position.

9. In a general service car having a plurality of doors, a shaft, hand operated means carried by said doors for engaging said shaft for temporarily supporting the doors in a given position, said shaft being movable into a position for permanently supporting said doors, during which movement the means carried by said doors are moved to a different position, whereby all of the doors may be dropped simultaneously.

10. In a general service car having a plurality of doors, a shaft, means whereby each of said doors may be closed individually and directly by hand, and means carried by the doors for temporarily forming a supporting connection between said doors and said shaft, said shaft being movable into a posi tion for permanently supporting said doors, during which movement the means carried by said doors are moved into another position, whereby all of the doors may be dropped simultaneously.

11. In a general service car having a pivotally mounted door, a, shaft carried by a stationary part of the car for lateral movement, a slidably mounted latch carried by said door and having a depending finger, said latch in one position overlying the shaft whereby the door is supported by the shaft through the. latch in closed position, said shaft being movable to a position under the door for permanently supporting the door, during which movement the shaft engages the latch finger for moving said latch into another position, whereby the door may drop into open position upon movement of the shaft to a non-supporting position.

12. In a general service car having a door, a lever receiving socket therefor comprising a single member with an opening at the rear and spaced projections in front for receiving the lever.

Signed at Chicago, Illinois, this 31st day of October, 1919.

DAVID HINDAHL. 

